[Amanaduial the archer]

Ok, here's the profile - the first post is to follow soon...

I apologise if I appear to be taking a few liberties with the family line here – Perky’s family tree simply left some spaces blank, so adding a miscellaneous scion didn’t seem too out of canon… Hope this is alright anyway.

Character Description Form:

1.) Have you ever played in an RPG at the Barrow Downs? – YES – Which one(s)? Brotherhood, a story from the Last Alliance; Rivendell; Cirith Ungol; The Undying Lands; Last Hope for Moria; Wolf Run; Search for the Lost Messenger; Gondorian House Call; Shadow of Umbra; Ride to the Dark Side; Crimson Sword; The Ambassador’s Son; Escape from Nurn; An Audience with the King; Kidnapped!; Roll Out The Barrels; Legacy of Traitors; Bloodstained Elanor; Land of Darkness; Shadow of the West; Fall of the North; Red Flows the Sirranon.

2.) How many RPG’s on the Barrow Downs are you currently involved in? One

List them, please: Red Flows the Sirranon

3.) Have you posted in The Green Dragon Inn – YES.
_______________________________________


Amanaduial the archer's character

NAME: Captain Chatazrakin Telmenzar (shortened to Rakin)

AGE: 48

RACE: Corsair – Black Numenorean

GENDER: Male

WEAPONS: Rakin’s primary weapon of choice is a cutlass, not unusually for a corsair – the relatively short blade is perfect for hand to hand fighting in the narrow confines of a deck, for either a slash or thrust action, and is less likely to get tangled in the rigging of the ship than a longer, showier sword or rapier. His own weapon is fairly unadorned, an item of necessity, but he has had a few changes made to the cutlass for practicality: the hardwood handle is bound over with leather, not the usual, smooth leather used for clothes, but rougher beaten leather, so as to maintain both comfort and an all-important good grip when the weapon gets wet – this is where many seamen may fall down, for shiny leather slips easily across sweaty palms and can cost a sailor’s life. The basket, curving around to protect the fingers, is solid rather than more decorative filigree (which can cut into the hand if it is too fine when pressure is applied), but is of a strange metal that almost seems to shine black – a mysterious and rather fine touch that gives the whole sword a rather more elegant appeal, and is carved on the outside simply with his name, ‘Chatazrakin’, along the very edge of the basket. He has a second, more decorative sword – corsairs have little need for dress swords but, well, just in case. However, Rakin is not confined entirely to the sword: inside that coat of his lies a regular little armoury, ranging from a variety of small, simple, easily concealable daggers (often lost and so dispensable), to a slender link-chain, about a foot in length, to the no-nonsense knuckle-dusters in case of emergencies; the knife in his left boot is not strictly for battle, although it is easily accessible enough to be turned to the purpose.

APPEARANCE: Chatazrakin bears little similiarity to his half-brother bar the distinctive height of the Numenoreans, as he stands at about 6ft 5, an average height for Numenoreans but a feature that marks him out from others. However, he has none of the physical frailty of his brother: he is well muscled and broad shouldered with his height, but not as fleshed out as might be expected, giving him the lean, dangerous look of a hungry wolf. Narrow, almost black eyes enhance this appearance, although his face is deceptively open and honest looking, useful for gaining trust or planning deception, although it can snap shut into anger or a wicked grin or laughter within an instant. He is essentially quite fine-featured and, to some eyes, quite beautiful, although it is a beauty that has borne a hard life at sea and a harder childhood on the streets. His fine, high cheekbones are pock-marked over on the left side with the old scars of childhood pox common among street children, and his skin is tanned although surprisingly unweathered by the elements, unusual for a seaman. His long, untamed black hair is pulled back into a plait from which plenty of straggling strands escape, often restrained under a black bandana. This only serves to enhance his roguish appearance, although generally he dresses more sedately, a mix-match of clothes including a loose shirt of hard-wearing but surprisingly pricey material, usually with the long sleeves rolled up to his elbows for practicality’s sake, although the colour may be less practical – the favoured white shirt makes a striking contrast against the black waistcoat which tops it, and Rakin has learnt that, far from being only a superficiality, appearance is subtly important in a trade of fear, and not to appear rather striking and wild would be almost foolishness, although such an appearance goes nicely with his own personality anyway. He will usually wear black breeches – not leather though, as this is hardly practical if they are likely to get wet – and watertight oiled black boots reaching up to his knees, with a long knife strapped down the outside of one, a must-have for sailors especially for disasters with the rigging or other ropes. Although he will be seen on the most unlikely days standing in the freezing cold with his thin shirt sleeves rolled right up, he is almost never seen without his battered black overcoat during battle; this may seem strange, but in fact the coat’s many inside pockets have served the corsair well many-a time when just a plain cutlass might not do, and the element of surprise is required, in the form of several small, well-concealed daggers, say. Plus the slim-fitting, split tailed coat looks so dashing when spun around, wouldn’t you say?

PERSONALITY/STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES: Rakin is, basically, almost faultlessly intelligent: not the book-learned cleverness of the academics and aristocrats, but the natural smartness and cunning that is learned from a hard life from birth, growing up in an underworld of thieves and then onto the streets. This life taught him early on a few skills that others learn only with a lifetime of experience – ruthlessness and hardness that many would have found unnerving in one so young, cunning and slyness that made him a perfect thief and cheat, deceptive skills that allowed him to easily trick the gullible, but never to rely on trickery too much more than is necessary – why increase the risk of being caught too far? But he has learnt other skills with the experience of being a seaman, and a Captain: for example, although it takes strength to stand and fight and to lead his crew into battle, it also takes a lot of strength to know when to turn from a battle as well. However, although possessed of a certain shrewdness and knowledge that his late mother sadly did not, Rakin is also quite a proud man, and maybe a little vain – it takes a lot to make him turn from a prize, and his fierceness can prove to be disadvantageous sometimes, when his pride gets in the way of his sense. His ruthlessness makes him an ideal corsair, although the position of Captain of a corsair ship is a precarious one: to an extent, even while he controls them, he is at their mercy – to push them too far, to make one too many unjust decisions or be just a little too ruthless, or too soft, is to sign his own death warrant. It is a fine line that he has to tread. However, after having been a corsair for most of his life, and a captain for over a decade, Rakin has some very valuable allies, and most of his crew is hand-picked, a few men loyal to him through thick and thin. Rakin is also fiercely loyal to the Castamirioni (see History), although to have the two Lords of Umbar, aristocrats far higher ranking than himself naturally, puts him again in a rather precarious position. But although shrewd and, yes, rather careful, Rakin has never been one to back down and roll over – not unless it is to dropkick his opponent. Such a strong and fierce personality could cause some sparks if his own authority is challenged too far…

HISTORY: Chatazrakin – or Rakin for short – was the illegitimate child of the House of Castamir; Sangalazin’s uncle, Sangahyando was as susceptible to a few illicit affairs and debauched pleasures as his twisted offspring, and Rakin was the product of a drunken night’s extramarital debauchery in an Umbar tavern. Unlike some of the unfortunate illegitimacies of the heirs of the Castamir, Rakin did not try to lay claim to the power of his father’s family, and so he was one of the fortunate ones – those who accused the Lords of Umbar of such discrepancies were often later ‘taken care of’ before any threat to the pure line could come about, and such a fate was to befall Rakin’s unfortunate mother when her son was barely ten years old.

Rakin, though, possessed some of the shrewdness that his mother had sadly not had, and never tried to leech of his father’s family, although they were certainly aware of his presence; he would have been immediately put to death if it had been thought that he would ever try to assert a claim to the position of Lord of Umbar over his precious half-brother. But as time passed and Rakin slipped quietly into the shadows, maybe they forgot, or simply lost interest, deciding that the illegitimate brat of a prostitute with no proof posed no threat to Sangalazin, or to Azaryan. Without a mother or father, it was a wonder that the boy managed to survive as well as he did but in fact the young Rakin found this start in life more a freedom than a hindrance. He became a proficient thief, cheat and liar, passing himself off for older than his years and getting odd-jobs in taverns so as to take a tidy helping of profits, and with an ability to quickly pick up skills that was very much to his advantage, all as a matter of survival. However, it was only a matter of time before he got pulled up by one of the Inn customers who he tried to cheat when dealing a fixed hand of cards – the Quartermaster of one of the Corsair ships. But rather than be outraged and destroying the boy (he could have had him made a slave or killed – who would have noticed a scrawny orphan boy go missing?), the corsair was actually mildly impressed with the boy and, after punishing him of course (not the last flogging Rakin would have to endure), he took him on as an extra on the ship, as a trial of sorts, on the simple basis that with one wrong move, Rakin would be off the boat – and probably not when they were near dry land either.

Rather than resent the Quartermaster, a man who went simply by the name of Dagaz, for the flogging, the punishment and the severe treatment of his mentor gave him a healthy respect for the authority of those who ran the ships – in part, because he was the only one who had ever really taken any sort of interest in him, even if it was only to give him a hard time. His quick wit and ability to gain the trust of others, to make them listen to him, was an advantage; after some brief tutoring from Dagaz, his skills with the sword also improved, and he became quite a skilful fighter, although a lot of his power lay in his cunning and skill with ‘less orthodox’ methods of fighting, well honed from years of a street existence. These advantages and traits gained Rakin respect and close allies quite quickly, and in his late thirties the crew of his ship gained a very fine Gondorian war vessel, which, as the elderly Quartermaster had no desire for a ship of his own, Dagaz bestowed on the young man. It was an unusual design of ship, bearing more similarities to the ships of the corsairs than the Gondorians, and Rakin was immensely proud of the vessel, naming it ‘Fame and Fortune’ and, unlike many in his profession, he has stuck to the same vessel for most of his career ever since, a period of just over ten years.

They were ten quite fruitful years, although like any seaman his profession has had very pointed ups and downs, but both the peaks and the troughs of his career have given him a wealth of experience that have made him a fair but ruthless captain, proud but shrewd nonetheless, and a mean fighter along with it; a man of some respect and standing, both from the corsairs, Gondorians, and even those of higher standing in Umbar. This is probably why it was his vessel that was chosen to bear the Lords; in addition, either despite or partly due to his mixed heritage, as a captain, Rakin has always made his loyalty to the Castamirioni very clear, which to an extent is probably one trait that gained him favour with the descendants of Castamir, although he has never, and would never, attempt to ingratiate himself with them as some would. Rakin largely put out of his mind his heritage, descended from the line of Castamir, as it is of little relevance or importance to a simple seaman, and even the long-winded name that his mother lavished upon him as some mark of higher breeding (although a lot of good it did her) is more often than not shortened to simply Captain Rakin; he never found out whether Sangalazin knew, although he suspected that the debauched darling of the Castamirioni is oblivious to his very being. However, it is a strange coincidence indeed that he should end up in such close quarters to his preciously spoilt half-brother, especially on the high seas when all sorts of accidents can happen…

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amanaduial the archer's post


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Edit: Just setting this up for transfer to the Discussion Thread ~*~ Pio